Mini Margherita Puff Pizza Pies

My wee boy is staying with his grandparents in Cyprus just now and I'm missing him like crazy. It's lovely to see how much fun he is having, but it's still hard.

In his honour, I thought I'd share one of his favourite recipes with you. Simple Margherita puff pizza pies.

He asks for these little pizza pies a lot and they are super simple to make. In fact they are easy enough for him to make himself.

Living on the Veg

These simple puff pizza pies are one of the recipes in my new book Living on the Veg, which I co-authored with Clive Gifford.

If you haven't seen it yet, Living on the Veg is a colourful guide to living meat-free which is aimed at children. The chapters include Going Veggie; Ye Olde Vegetarian; What's in a Name?; Why Turn Veggie?; Questions Questions; Healthy Living; A Veggie Life and Get Cooking.

What can I expect?

It is full of fun facts and answers all the questions you might have about a vegetarian diet.

The recipes are aimed at children aged 9-11 years old, but younger children could make the recipes with a bit more help and they are also perfect for older children and adults who want to try out a veggie diet.

I created 12 recipes for the book. A few you will find on my blog and the rest are new recipes, but they are all easy and delicious.

10 Minute Bean Burgers - our favourite burgers which are mashed together in one bowl, then cooked. So, so good!

Puff Pizza Pies - another favourite in our house and quick to make are little puff pastry pizzas.

Quick Green Spaghetti Sauce - an easy sauce for pasta whizzed up in a blender or food processor.

Spinach and Coconut Dal - a simple dal that's made in under half an hour and super tasty.

Easy Chocolate Mousse - just three ingredients, no egg and ready in minutes.

Chocolate Brownies - fudgey chocolate brownies, just how they should be.

Strawberry Cheesecake No-Churn Ice Cream - a luxurious ice cream you can make without an ice cream maker and you don't have to churn it by hand either.

Coconut Ice - a traditional recipe for an old-fashioned sweet treat you can make at home.

Puff Pizza Pies

I mentioned how easy these puff pizza pies are to make, but I didn't explain why.

They are made with ready-rolled puff pastry. Just take it out of the fridge for 15-20 minutes before you are going to use it, then cut circles out with a cup or a small bowl as a template.

Next you spread on either tomato puree or pizza sauce, a sprinkle of dried oregano, slices of fresh mozzarella and slices of cherry tomato. That's it!

Of course you could add your favourite pizza toppingson these mini puff pizzas, but the simplicity of these flavours work so well, I urge you to try them like this first before adding any other toppings.

They aren't too high calorie wise either at 158 calories per mini pizza.

Mini Margherita Puff Pizza Pies

Easy mini Margherita pizza pies that can be made in under 30 minutes. They are easy enough for children to make and they always love to eat them. Serve with a salad for a light dinner.

prep time: 15 minscook time: 15 minstotal time: 30 mins

ingredients

320g ready rolled puff pastry

4-5 tbsp tomato puree

125g mozzarella or vegan mozzarella, sliced thinly

8 cherry tomatoes or 4 salad tomatoes, sliced

1 tsp dried oregano

instructions

Take the puff pastry out on the
box and leave it on a plate to come to room temperature for 15 minutes before
your make your pizzas.

Preheat the oven to 200c/180c fan/gas mark 6.

Carefully unroll the pastry. Use a small bowl to cut circles out of the pastry. Press down and give it a wiggle. If you need to you can use a knife, but the bowls should be enough. Place the circles onto 2 baking trays, leaving a space between each pastry circle.

Top each pastry circle with a dollop of tomato puree and spread around carefully, leaving a small border around the edge with no puree.

Top with a slice of mozzarella and slices of tomato.

Sprinkle each pizza with a little oregano.

Bake the pizzas for 15 minutes until the pastry is golden and the cheese has melted. Serve with some salad and garlic bread.

This is the sort of thing Sylvia loves too. What is it about tomato and cheese and kids! It is really great to have a vegetarian book for kids as Sylvia tends towards the sweet books because savoury ones have so much meat she doesn't like it. Does cooper put it in the oven himself or does he get help with that - from a few conversations with parents it seems something kids that age aren't so comfortable with.

It's always a safe bet isn't it. No I never let him use the oven, it's too easy to get burned. I let him use the cooker top if I am standing with him and he knows the rules and what to do. I let him use the toaster without supervision and he can make porridge in the microwave himself.

I love the idea of a vegetarian cookbook for children. Getting them involved in cooking is wonderful, a perfect way to ensure they know what they eat and keep making healthy choices when they grow up. Love the recipe too. x

Congratulations on the book, Jacqueline! What a great idea featuring recipes for this age group and so easy too. I also love that you use pre-prepared puff pastry - something I do at home too. Love the look of all the recipes you feature here!

I love reading comments, so thank you for taking the time to leave one. Unfortunately, I'm bombarded with spam, so I've turned on comment moderation. I'll publish your comments as soon as I can and respond to them. Don't panic, they will disappear when you hit publish. Jac x